A/N: As always, this is a work of fiction. I do not own any of the characters from the show One Tree Hill. Feedback is also much appreciated… I hope you guys enjoy!

The first time he'd laid eyes on her, it had been in passing. She was nothing special—just the girl who sat next to him in English, the girl who always had pens when he had left his in his locker or, as happened on some occasions, he just hadn't thought to shove one in his backpack in the morning. She seemed nice. Reliable. A little timid. A girl next door.

Not the kind of girl that Nathan Scott gave more than a moment's thought to.

But that had all been before he'd realized that she had connections—apparently deep connections—with Lucas Scott. When Nathan saw Haley James and Lucas walking to the movies one night, heads bent together in conversation, he had seen in her something that he had seen in no one else. She could be his key to giving Lucas a taste of his own medicine.

For weeks, Lucas had been slowly moving in between Nathan and his girlfriend, Peyton Sawyer. If that alone weren't enough, their common genetic ties caused a frigid, impassable gap between them; Nathan and Lucas were both the sons of Dan Scott, an ex-basketball god in the small town of Tree Hill but a royal asshole nonetheless. When they were in high school, Dan and Karen had been a young couple in love. Lucas was the product of their love.

A product that Dan had abandoned for college and basketball dreams, which lead him right to the future Debra Scott, Nathan's mother. There were born only three months apart, and Dan had never attempted to be a father to Lucas. Dan's older brother, Keith, was much more of a father to his nephew than Dan ever tried to be.

On the other hand, Dan was a father to Nathan. He claimed Nathan. He pressured Nathan and pushed him to be the basketball star that he himself could never move on to be. He drove him hard, to the point of being cold, brutal, and uncaring. Sometimes Nathan wondered if he, the son with a father, was really the lucky one. Basketball had once been his only true solace, and even that felt like it was being taken from him. So far, not even the harsh hazing that Nathan and the rest of the team had been pushing on Lucas was enough to get rid of him.

Nathan had been the sole star of Tree Hill High School's championship basketball team until Lucas had decided to join that year. The team had always been Nathan's territory—he owned the game, he owned the players, and he commanded respect from everyone, both his teammates and his opponents. Lucas, on the other hand, had previously only played at the local park, but the talent was undeniable. If there was one good thing Dan Scott had given to his children, it was his athletic ability.

Losing Peyton wasn't horribly traumatic for Nathan. They had been together for almost two years, sure, but he didn't love her. She was a good person, but they didn't connect. He was the brooding star player on the basketball team. She was a cheerleader who hated what she did and instead enjoyed sketching moody pictures in her notebook and listening to rock music. In theory, it was right that they were together. It was fitting in the social hierarchy of the school.

It simply didn't fit to their personalities. The whole relationship had been physical and, to a certain degree, a friendship. Nathan would be the first to admit that he hadn't always treated her the way that she deserved to be treated, but he couldn't help it. He had an ego. He had a short temper. He knew it.

On one level, the breakup had been something long in the making. Still, the fact that Lucas had to step in and play a part in the process annoyed Nathan to no end. True Scotts didn't lose—and he couldn't lose to his father's mistake.

That's where Haley came in. She obviously meant something to Lucas, which meant that Nathan could use her to hurt his older brother. Lucas had stolen Peyton, so he would take Haley from him. Lucas seemed to be a pretty emotional guy who formed real connections with people; that would make the pain even greater for him when he realized that his dear friend had an attachment to Nathan.

It might take some time, but Haley would fall for Nathan. All the girls did. His charm and good looks were impossible to resist. She would fall and he would trail her on just long enough to crush her when he was done. And Lucas would feel every ounce of her pain, Nathan was sure of it.

Now he just had to figure out how to get her, and then he would set his plan in action.